Thank you for addressing this important topic and maintaining a message of hope for both persons affected by an eating disorder and their families. I have treated at least 2000 patients over 25 years, most severely ill adults and adolescents with anorexia nervosa. Many of the most seriously and chronically ill have fully recovered — and the vast majority benefitted from treatment. Even those patients who fail FBT and multiple inpatient or residential programs often do well in the long run — we cannot tell who if anyone is untreatable. Our hospital-based program’s published rates of weight gain and of weight restoration are high, however a small percentage fail to gain significant weight — yet even for these individuals the potential to improve exists, whether by being treated in a different program, utilizing a different approach or at another time in their illness. Keeping this hope alive is critical to recovery — both for patients and for their families.
Thank you for addressing this important topic and maintaining a message of hope for both persons affected by an eating disorder and their families. I have treated at least 2000 patients over 25 years, most severely ill adults and adolescents with anorexia nervosa. Many of the most seriously and chronically ill have fully recovered — and the vast majority benefitted from treatment. Even those patients who fail FBT and multiple inpatient or residential programs often do well in the long run — we cannot tell who if anyone is untreatable. Our hospital-based program’s published rates of weight gain and of weight restoration are high, however a small percentage fail to gain significant weight — yet even for these individuals the potential to improve exists, whether by being treated in a different program, utilizing a different approach or at another time in their illness. Keeping this hope alive is critical to recovery — both for patients and for their families.